Forget me not
by MssWriter
Summary: A rather short one-shot about the effects of Altzheimer's Disease. Dedicated to my grandpa.


The years had executed its bitter work on her body. He watched as she lay before him, frame wilted. Her lids fluttered in slumber and found himself staring at her chest, the rising and falling of her wheezing breath comforting him. He tried his best to hold in the tears, she always hated seeing him like this; so broken and forlorn. Now it did not matter as it had in the past. He reached his hand to touch her, pausing knowing it would cause her to stir. He sighed as he placed his hands over hers, finally giving into his body.

Her bright blue orbs sprang to life; he watched as they searched the area around her in alarm, attempting to find the source of her disturbance. As her eyes finally found his she jolted her body in surprise,

"_Who_ are _you_?" She hissed, fear lying behind her bitter tone.

He sighed heavily looking into her eyes, pleading for her to remember,

"I am Derek Venturi. Your Husband." He replied in a painful tone.

Derek stuck his hand out to her; this he knew would calm her in the slightest sense. She may not know who he was anymore; she still knew a handshake meant a possible friend. Usually she would grasp his hand with a weak shake before turning her body from him, a slight smile gracing her lips. His love barely spoke anymore and it was sick, how he actually looked forward to her questioning his being simply to hear her voice again.

"Casey…" He began.

He could not finish when he realized she did not recognize her own name today. He sighed heavily, moving his chair closer to her bed. He desperately wanted wrap her in his arms, banishing this awful disease. He simply wanted it to go away and leave his wife alone. Most of all he wanted his wife to _remember_ everything they've accomplished. Their children, their home, and the life they built together.

Derek sighed heavily, knowing this was not possible anymore '_Let it go Derek, this is what you have now.'_ And that was enough for him, because she was still Casey and he still loved her with his entire being. A sudden thought occurred to him; he reached into his pocket retrieving a small trinket, something he _knew_ she would recognize,

"Do you remember this?" He asked her, holding up the object in his hand.

He eyes grew wide in realization as she lunged forward, snatching it from his grasp. Casey sat forward, brows furred as she examined the golden necklace that now lay in her hands. She ran a wrinkled finger over the heart shaped locket a small smile creeping onto her face. Her hands fumbled to open the clasp of the heart. She was beginning to frown; a sure sign of her frustrations.

Derek reached over and she winced slightly,

"Here Case, I'll open it for you. Do you want to see the picture inside?" He asked, trying not to coddle her.

She reached her hand out to him placing the necklace in the palm of his hand. He made quick work to open it before she forgot what she was doing. He handed it back to her, Casey placed in it the palms of her hands the locket now open placed in the middle. She gasped looking at the pictures.

Derek remembered the day he gave it too her, she lay in a bed extremely similar to the one that cradled her body today…

_45 years earlier…_

_Derek watched as her chest heaved, face drenched in sweat. Little strings of hair stuck to her forehead; any other day Casey would have a conniption if she ever saw her reflection in a mirror. But not today, not only did she not care for her appearance she was allowing Derek to snap pictures away like she was a celebrity. _

"_Oh Derek, this is it. I will have _no_ more children. It is far too exhausting!" Casey said, whining slightly._

"_Alright, alright. But for the record you said that the last two times." Derek replied, a devilish grin on his face._

"_Yes, well this time I mean it!" She huffed._

"_Case?" Derek began._

"_What Derek?" She replied._

"_I love you. And I know that this wasn't the 31st birthday you expected but I mean what better birthday present than a brand knew baby boy!" Derek told her happily._

_She stared at him, blinking heavily for a few moments._

"_Yes, Derek. The joy of new life and all that, but where are you going with this?" Casey pondered, quirking her brow._

_He chuckled at her before continuing, _

"_I planned to give this to you before all this happened but I suppose now is as good a time as any!" He said pulling a small box out of his pocket._

"_Uh, Derek? If you haven't forgotten you've already proposed. In fact we've been married for _eleven_ years." Casey said with an amused smile on her face. _

"_Ok, than I suppose you don't need this than do you?" He replied, reflecting her smile._

"_Oh just give it here." She grinned, snatching the box from his grip._

_As she opened the box she gasped, tears in her eyes. A beautiful golden heart locket, opened to reveal only one picture. It was a tiny picture of the five of them; Derek's arm wrapped around her shoulder her head resting in the crook of his neck. Placed on their laps their three children; Amy at age 4, Dylan age 3 and their previous youngest Delilah age 1 and a half._

"_Thank you Derek." She sighed._

"_No problem, Princess." He said with a quick peck on her cheek._

"_I left the other side empty for our newest addition when we take the new family picture this year." Derek continued._

"_Well it's a boy Case…" Derek began._

"_Yes I was well aware of that when the doctor announced it at birth." She replied with a cheeky grin._

"_Well what are we going to name him?" He asked excitedly._

_Casey pondered for a moment before replying,_

"_Nathan Exandor Venturi." Casey said dreamily._

"_Thank God, now turn the locket around."_

_Casey complied flipping the golden heart around shaking her head as she read the inscription,_

_For the loves of my life,_

_Casey Marie Venturi,_

_Amy Elizabeth,_

_Dylan Edwin,_

_Delilah Daisy,_

_And our newest edition_

_Nathan Exandor Venturi_

_Her eyes welled, "You realize we certainly cannot have any more children now? There is simply no room on this locket!" Casey chuckled, wrapping her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply._

"_I love you Derek." _

Her words echoed in his mind. He watched as realization hit her. She gasped looking at him,

"Derek?" She hissed.

He flung from his seat, wrapping his arms around her waist. This has been the first time in three and a half years she'd said his name, let alone remembered _anything_ from their shared past. He was not about to pass up the opportunity to touch his wife.

She leaned back and pressed her lips to his briefly before ripping her body from his,

"Help! Help!" She wailed.

Casey curled into the nearest edge of her bed from him, eyes wide and frightened. The nurses rushed to her side, banishing him from the room. Tears were now falling freely from his eyes. For the briefest of moments he _felt her_. Really _felt _his Casey beneath the body that lay in that bed. He came so often to her side that he could recount the steps with his eyes closed.

Derek shook his head, pondering why this was happening to him. As he stood in the hallway just outside her room; he brought his hands to his own equally withered face and finally crumbled. For the first time in three and a half years he felt himself giving up. He let his body fall to the ground.

"Dad?" He heard the voice of his youngest son but he did not look up, he couldn't look into the face of his child like this.

"What's going on?" He heard a second voice of his eldest daughter.

It was as if the realization that she was never coming back, finally hit him. He felt his heart breaking all over again as it did the day they found out her condition. Derek stopped his tears and tried to remember it all. The life they shared, the memories they made together. Because _that_ would be the only way he would see _his_ Casey again. His children pulled him from the ground and he hobbled over and peeked into her room. A few stray tears still gently cascading down his face.

She sat on her bed, still holding the golden trinket in her hands, staring at it thoughtfully. All Derek could do was live for the few and far between moments she actually remembered everything that they where, and everything that they built together. Until then he would live in his memories, recounting every last event.

* * *

**I dedicate this to my grandfather. He has been struggling with Alzheimer's for quite a few years now. While he may not remember me anymore I will _always_ remember him and the memories we made. I love you grandpa!**


End file.
